Electrically operated spray outfit



Feb. 15, 1949.

E. D. RAPISARDA ELECTRICALLY OPERATED SPRAY OUTFIT Filed Feb. 4, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 M ATTORNEYS Feb. 15, 1949. E. D. RAPISARDA 2,462,001

ELECTRICALLY OPERATED SPRAY OUTFIT Filed Feb. 4, 1946 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR [Yaw/100.0. PAP/SA 00A ATTORNEYS Feb. 15, 1949. E. D. RAPISARDA ELECTRICALLY OPERATED SPRAY OUTFIT 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 4, 1946 INVENTORV Zoom/P0 J-FAPIJARM BY gav f/ I ATTORNEYS ELECTRICALLY OPERATED SPRAY OUTFIT Edward D. Rapisarda, Agawam, Mass., assignor to Gilbert & Barker Manufacturing Company, West Springfield, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application February 4, 1946, Serial No. 645.390

1 Claim. 1

by very simple and inexpensive apparatus, and

the major portion of low cost present-day guns can be retained. This is an advantage since they have been carefully worked out for inexpensive production.

The manner in which these results are accomplished will best be understood from the accompanying drawings,in which:

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, with certain parts broken away to the median plane;

Fig, 2 is a section on line 2--2 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 1;

Figs. 4 to 8 inclusive are details on an enlarged scale of various parts;

Fig. 9 is a fragmentary view, generally similar to Fig. 1 but with the solenoid-driven parts in their forward position;

Fig. 10 is a detail of the cover; and

Fig. 11 is a detail of the handle.

The spray gun is provided with a cylindrical barrel 1 secured to a cap 2 screw-threaded onto a container 3 as in the usual construction; The customary small tube 4 passing from the bottom of the container through the cap and terminating adjacent a central hole 4 in the end head of the barrel permits a current of air blown through the hole to draw liquid up from the can and to atomize it. This is all conventional and requires nodescription.

A head is flanged at 6 to give a tight fit into the barrel and is provided with a series of openings 1. A valve 8, which may be a simple disk of rubber or, as shown, a circular piece of very light spring metal cut to provide a segment overlying each opening 1, is riveted to the head 5 at 9. Air forced out through the openings can push the valve away, while reverse flow cannot ocour on account of the springiness of the disk. A piston, generically indicated at ill, is' formed by disks H and I2 on either side of a cup washer IS. A brass piston rod 14 is shouldered to pass through central holes in the disks and washer and is headed over into a depression I5 in the disk II to hold the piston assembled. A spring 16 between the piston and head 5 tends to pushthe piston to the left as viewed in Fig. 1, this spring being of the conical or bee-hive type in order to permit very close approach of the piston to the head.

To force the piston towards the head magnetic means are provided including a solenoid l1 and an armature l8 into which the end of the piston rod is brazed. This armature is turneddown at its end to provide flanges l9 and 20 for a purpose to be described. A soft iron core 2| is mounted within the solenoid, being apertured to permit the piston rod to slide through it and being headed over on the outside of one of two iron disks 22 which are placed at the ends of the coil. Preferably a sleeve 23 of soft iron, which may be longitudinally slotted to avoid eddy current heating, surrounds the solenoid and is suitably secured to the inside of the barrel. The

end disks and sleeve assist in concentrating the magnetic flux due to current passing through the coil.

The barrel is provided with an outwardly pro- J'ecting flange 24 lyi within grooves 25 and 28 in a handle assembly formed of a portion 21 and a cover portion 28 preferably molded from insulating material. The handle portion is solid to a line 29 and is then cut away to its central plane with cored-out portions and supports as will be mentioned below. The cover 28 has a portion 30 fitting against the shoulder 29, and is substantially a mirror image of'the handle so that they form a complete closure for operating parts and present a smooth exterior. Holes 3| in the handle and cover are provided with the customary molded inserts so that they may be secured together with screws.

A pivot pin 32 has a knurled end 33 (Fig. 8) which is molded into a hole 34 in the handle. Freely rotatable upon this pin is a stirrup 35 (Fig. 5) having holes 36 through which the pin passes. One side of the stirrup has its tdp in the form' of a V-shaped seat to receiveoneend of a thrust spring 31 preferably formed of a zigzag fiat strip of beryllium copper. The other end of the spring is received in a seat 38 molded in the handle 21. A spring toggle is thus formed which can snap the stirrup from one side to the other of its centerline position, abutments 39 and 40 molded in the handle limiting the mo-' tion. The operation of the toggle is under the control of the piston rod through the'flanges l9 and 20, between which is located a pin 4| extending between the sides of the stirrup. The flanges are spaced a distance suflicient so that there is considerable lost motion between the flanges and the pin for reasons to'be discussed. a

One wire 42 from the solenoid is. soldered in a hole '43 in the bar of the stirrup, which serves as one link in the electrical connections. An offset 44 of the second side of the stirrup has a spring contact piece 45 provided with a. silver contact 46. It will be seen from Figs. 1 and 3 that the toggle spring and its cooperating side of the stirrup lie in the cored-out part of the handle 21. It is desirable from considerations of assembly that all the operating parts be car- '3 be observed with the cover removed. A second contact piece 51 (see Figs. 4 and 11) carrying a silver contact 48 is fastened, as by. rivets "89 to one side 50 of a conducting bracket molded into the handle. As will be seen in Fig. 3 the second contact piece is mounted at an angle so that its silver contact 48 will be opposite the contact 46.

The bracket 5| has a spring metal switch member 52 riveted at 53 to the second side 54 of bracket 5i. The end of this member is preferably bent over at 55 to flt into the space between the two upturned sides v5|! and 54 and give additional rigidity. The outer end of the member 52 is preferably bent reversely as at 56 to give greater resiliency for contact with the second. switch member 51. This second member is in the form of a right a ngled bracket one side of which is molded to the cover in such a position that when the cover is in place the second side 58 will lie adjacent to but out of contact with the reverse bend 56. Both handle and cover are provided with semi-circular recesses 59 and 60 which retages will now be considered. The parts are preferably kept in proper alignment by a notch 16 in the handle which receives the longitudinal ceive the shank of a molded thumb piece 6! of I ond wire 61 from the solenoid is also secured to this binding post.

When no current is flowing the parts are in the position of Fig. 1, with the toggle spring to a position in which the member 45 and its complementary member, contact piece 41 (see Fig. 11) are in contact. An open electrical circuit is thus set up from one side of the solenoid through the stirrup and contact member 45't0 switch member 52, and from the other side of the solenoid through binding post 66 to one side of the external conductor. If the thumb piece is depressed the second wire of the conductor will be coupled to switch member 52 and the solenoid energized. Ignoring the pumping action for the moment, the armature l8 will be drawn into the solenoid rapidly, with a force increasing as the armature nears the core 2 I. Initially no action on the toggle will be produced, but near the end of the stroke the flange will strike pin 4| and the toggle brought towards dead center. Just before the armature reaches the core 2i the toggle will be brought over its center and will spring to the position of ,Fig, 9, causing contacts 45 and 41 to open and the solenoid to be deenergized. Spring I6 will then return the piston rod, and just before the end of its stroke the flange l9 will strike pin 4| and snap the toggle over into position to close the contacts. A rapid reciprocating action of the piston will thus occur as long as the thumb piece is held down.-

Each time the piston advances air will be forced through holes 1 into the chamber 68 be-' tween head 5 and the closed end of the barrel. As the piston retracts the cup washer will allow air to pass into the space surrounding spring l6, to be again compressed on the next advance of the piston. A hole 65 in the barrel permits entry of air behind the piston. Chamber 68 will rapidly become charged with air under pressure, which will flow out the hole in the barrel end in a steady seam (not shown) by which the sheet metal of the barrel is formed into a cylinder. The handle 21 is extended into the same plane as the bottom of the container 3 so as to support the assembly in upright position on a table. All operating parts, including the stirrup, toggle spring and make and break contacts are carried by the handlefl, so that when the cover 28 is removed their operation can be observed by applying lead wires to the wire 61 and the switch member 52. Any necessary adjustments can thus be made, and their effect noted, while the operating parts are exposed.

I claim:

- An atomizer of the type having a container and an eduction tube rising. from the container, comprising a piston barrel having one end open and having a head at the other end provided with an aperture through which atomizing air is expelled, a valved piston slidably mounted in said barrel, a handle comprising a main portion and a cover portion, said portions having near one end semi-cylindrical parts embracing said barrel atits open end, means for clamping the handle portions together to grip the last-named end of the barrel, the inner and adjacent sides of said handle portions being recessed to provide between them a chamber communicating with the open end of said barrel, a solenoid fixed in said barrel between said open end and the piston, an armature movable within the solenoid and connected to the piston, a perforated head fixed in the barrel between the head of the barrel and the piston and spaced from the head of the barrel to form a pressure equalizing chamber, a flexible disk mounted on the side of the perforated head remote from the piston and covering the perforations in the last-named head to serve as a check valve, a pair of spaced abutments on said armature, a stirrup pivoted to the main portion of said handle, a toggle spring engaging the stirrup to hold it in either of two extreme positions, a contact member carried by the stirrup, a second contact member carried by the main handle portion to be engaged by the first contact member when the toggle is in retracted position, an abutment carried by the stirrup for lost motion engagement with said spaced abutments. a switch member carried by the main portion of the handle; and electrical connections between the switch member, said contacts and the solenoid; said stirrup, toggle spring, contact members, switch member, and all said abutments being located in said first mentioned chamber.

EDWARD D. RAPISARDA.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,054,106 Vogel Sept. 15, 1936 2,127,189 Sculiari et al Aug. 16, 1938 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 196,575 Great Britain Sept. 20, 1923 

